2026. 7. 17. 20:43ㆍ취미생활/야구
Hello there.
Today's post is about Rawlings, the company behind the official ball and some of the most trusted gloves in Major League Baseball.
If you've ever watched an MLB game, chances are you've seen the Rawlings logo stamped on the ball or on a fielder's glove without giving it much thought.
"Has the official MLB baseball always looked the way it does today?"
Let's take a look at how a small sporting goods store in St. Louis grew into the company that now supplies gloves and balls to the entire league.
Origins
Rawlings traces its roots back to 1887, when brothers George and Alfred Rawlings opened a sporting goods store in St. Louis, Missouri.
The original store reportedly sold a wide range of goods, from fishing tackle and firearms to baseball, football, golf, polo, and tennis equipment. It looked nothing like the focused baseball brand we know today.
After a fire destroyed the original shop, the brothers had to find a new path forward. In 1898, they partnered with Charles Scudder, who provided the capital needed to move into manufacturing.
By 1906, Rawlings had started outfitting the St. Louis Cardinals with uniforms, and in 1907 the company supplied its first official baseball to a professional league, setting the stage for its rise as a major player in baseball equipment.
Key Facts
The most defining moment in Rawlings' history is generally traced to 1919. St. Louis Cardinals pitcher Bill Doak designed a glove with a few strands of rawhide connecting the thumb and forefinger, creating a deeper pocket, and then patented and sold the design to Rawlings.
That "deep pocket" structure is widely considered the precursor to the modern baseball glove. The deeper webbing made catching the ball far more secure, and the design helped Rawlings become the preferred glove of professional players for decades.
In 1957, the company introduced the Rawlings Gold Glove Award, honoring the best defensive player at each position in the majors. The Gold Glove remains one of the sport's most prestigious honors today, and it's worth noting the award's name comes directly from Rawlings' own gloves.
More recently, in June 2018, Major League Baseball and Seidler Equity Partners jointly acquired Rawlings in a deal reportedly worth around 395 million dollars, deepening the company's ties to the league even further.
Good to Know
Rawlings isn't the only name in baseball equipment. Louisville Slugger, famous for bats, was founded in 1884 and is actually older than Rawlings, while Japan's Mizuno dates to 1906 and America's Wilson to 1913 — both still major players in the gear market today.
Even something as simple as a baseball can differ subtly between brands, from the stitching pattern to the leather and weight distribution. Professional players are known to be sensitive to these small differences, which says a lot about how much equipment details can matter at the highest level.
If you play in a rec league or coach youth baseball, knowing a bit about the history behind your glove or bat brand can make choosing gear a little more interesting.